Are Tottenham now as good as Arsenal?

Arjen Robben is well on his way to becoming the second most popular Dutchman around White Hart Lane, after admitting he thinks the signing of Rafael van der Vaart means there is now nothing to choose between Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur.

Speaking to the Daily Star Sunday, the Bayern Munich winger said: "Before Rafa signed, I'd still have had Arsenal down as the stronger team - but now I don't think there is anything between them.

"With Rafa on board, Spurs really do have one of the very best midfield players in the Premier League, maybe even the best.

"In terms of his vision, his range of passing, his ability to split a defence and his eye for goal he is as good as Cesc Fabregas, Steven Gerrard and of course Frank Lampard."

"When you consider the amount of money Real Madrid and Manchester City have spent on players, it's almost unbelievable to think what Spurs reportedly paid for Rafa.

"Madrid almost gave away one of the best players in the world - but that's their style.

"They got rid of me and Wesley Sneijder in the same summer and I went on to win my domestic league and get to the Champions League Final while Wesley went on to win the Treble and become the best player in the world.

"Madrid's mistake will very much be Spurs' gain."

That's just Mr Robben's opinion of course, but what we want to know is - what do you think?

Does the signing make that much difference? Does Arsenal's failure to sign a new goalkeeper mean the gap is smaller than it otherwise would be? Or is Robben just singing the praises of his mate and having a sly dig at Real?

Let us know what you think and we'll publish the best replies...

Published: 6 Sep 2010

29 Comments

simon (September 6, 2010 10:59 AM) said:

haha been hearing the same thing from Spurs for about 10 years now. Good luck, one flaky Dutchman should make all the difference.

Souperdragon (September 6, 2010 11:02 AM) said:

Will you give me the same odds on the Arse winning the league as you are currently offering for the Tiny Totts? no didn't think so!! Nuff said.

Aziz, KL-Malaysia (September 6, 2010 11:06 AM) said:

exactly. That's why Moaninho sold him and Barca didn't want him. Absolutely correct. KMA

Phil (September 6, 2010 11:12 AM) said:

Typical arrogant Arsenal fans. The gaps pretty small now, you cant deny that. You're keepers will let you down again.

cartel (September 6, 2010 11:15 AM) said:

spurs are on the up. arsenal on the way down. when fabregas leaves next summer and glass legs van persie is out injured again, lets see how good you are!

Hahahahahaha! (September 6, 2010 11:19 AM) said:

Hahahahahaha! Hahahahahaha!

Please, stop it! My ribs! Hahahahahaha!

Essex_yid (September 6, 2010 11:20 AM) said:

Not yet but even the most ignorant gooner would have to admit the gap is most definatley closing. We are getting stonger whilst your squad isn't anywhere near as good as it was it was 4-5 years ago. Teams used to fear Arsenal.....this fear has def gone!

Mon (September 6, 2010 11:20 AM) said:

Yes of course, VDV is a messiah from heaven sent by god to carry the spurs to their ultimate destination. Signing VDV is like signing messi. After all,they r of the same level. VDV is slightly better as his name is bettr and is prettier. I bet all the top european clubs are now sweating on how they will compete agains team galacticos of london. I think evry1 should just forfeight b4 getting thrashed by this superior club. I bet this club can thrash a club like wigan 10-0 at white hart lane. Oh wait...

Erichero (September 6, 2010 11:24 AM) said:

If you went player by player, the squads would seem quite close, but Arsenal are still that far ahead of Spurs when it comes down to business. That means one thing: Arsenal have a far superior manager.

n (September 6, 2010 11:30 AM) said:

macca (September 6, 2010 11:38 AM) said:

what a joker ! we'll see who finishes above who !!

Big Philly Style (September 6, 2010 12:11 PM) said:

At least Robben isnt biased towards the Dutch..oh wait..

Song's Hair (September 6, 2010 12:17 PM) said:

Spurs still have a long way to go before reaching Arsenal. Maybe not in the current day, but it's like saying you have done better in the last 10% of an exam when the other person has done better in the first 90 and has done better overall, that person would be credited with being better, hence Arsenal being the 3rd best team in English football and Spurs being some way below that.

A (September 6, 2010 12:30 PM) said:

so arsenal fans are stating the facts and the tottenham fans counter is to call us typical arrogant gooners? uh... that hurt... not. we may desperately need a gk but one dutchman is not going to win the fecking league, even if he is the dogs danglys. like Souperdragon said, what odds are you getting for being champs?

Betfair Football (September 6, 2010 12:39 PM) said:

A question for the more confident Spurs fans - how many years away from finishing above Arsenal and ending "St Totteringham's Day" do you believe you are? Can it be done this season?

Sebastian (September 6, 2010 1:01 PM) said:

why to spurs fans embarrass themselves like this every year? have you learnt nothing? Talk less, and more proof. Arsenal will only take you seriously when you finish above us. And every year you say you will...and fail to do so.

What i love is that spurs think they will build on last season. They will play 6 champions league games, then because of the demand of playing twice a week, they will be way off the pace in the league by the time they got knocked out and finish 7th...meaning no more champions league again. We have been in the champions league for 14 years in a row. you make the group stages once and you think you are better than us? idiots.

chika (September 6, 2010 1:06 PM) said:

i find it quite strange for a top player like van der vaart to join a club with such a s*** team. now this p*** of s**** are even stating that they are better than us, u must be kidding me. u fools were just fortunate to make it to the top four last season, I DOUBLE DARE U to achieve that this season. SCOUSRES.

Linton Muir (September 6, 2010 1:18 PM) said:

When they have developed their new stadium,filled it with 60,000 fans each week, won the league several more times, played in the champions league for several years and reached the final - the answer might be yes. For now, no.

Russ (September 6, 2010 2:28 PM) said:

The gap is closing but look at what spurs have spent on transfers over the past 5-6 years compared to Arsenal - they should have closed the bloody gap!

Lets see what Spurs do in the transfer market if and when they ever build this new stadium. By the the time it's completed Arsenal would have paid off a huge chunk of their debts and lets see where the gap is then.

Spurs need to win a few titles and finish above Arsenal for 15 consecutive seasons before they start getting too excited.

Russ (September 6, 2010 2:28 PM) said:

The gap is closing but look at what spurs have spent on transfers over the past 5-6 years compared to Arsenal - they should have closed the bloody gap!

Spurs need to win a few titles and finish above Arsenal for 15 consecutive seasons before they start getting too excited.

smurffee (September 6, 2010 3:03 PM) said:

Arsenal fans, you are falling in to the trap of being overly focused on when Arsenal were a top top side. I know this is hard for you to take, but you are a team on the slide and other clubs (including Spurs and Man City) are fast catching - if they haven't already caught - you up.
In the last 7 years you have gone from "Invincibles" to title challengers, to Champions League qualification certainties, to in the just another side battling it out for a european place. Accept it, the trend is downward. Your place at the big table is under serious threat.
When Fabregas leaves in the summer, that will be the death knell for this particular squad. Wenger will have to deconstruct and rebuild the side, this will take time, during which the gap between you and the top sides will grow even more and allow the chasing pack to close the gap and perhaps overtake you. Is it unfeasible that Arsenal are playing Europa league football in 2 seasons time? Based on the trend of the last 7 years I don't think it is, especially as Man City are likely to buy their way to success over the next few seasons to join Chelsea and Man U at the head of English football.

Are the current Spurs squad as good as Arsenal? Many of the sports' eminent pundits believe the Spurs squad is stronger, and sing the praises of the side in the style in which they play the game. Perhaps the tide is turning, perhaps not, but the two sides are certainly closer than they have been for as long as I can remember. I think both Spurs and City will push Arsenal much harder this season.

Only time and shinys will tell. You can't rely on days when Arsenal were good and your rivals were poor, Henry and Vieira don't play for you any more. Fabregas' heart isn't in it anymore and will walk away and van Persie aside I don't see too many other top class (and consistent) players in the Arsenal side.

Andy (September 6, 2010 3:35 PM) said:

Most of you Arse scum are missing the point, we arent talking about years gone by, we are talking about strength of squads NOW and Spurs is by far the better. Look at it man for man on paper and you are deluded if you think any different.

gettingthereslowly (September 6, 2010 3:36 PM) said:

Well i know the gap has come down, as there were only five points difference at the end of last season.And that to me means there is very little to choose between them, so in affect there on par with each other.So yes arsenal will have more pressure on them now and it's showing by all the crap spouted about ?

Theo (September 6, 2010 5:44 PM) said:

All of the above comments stating T*ttenham are improving may well be correct? Van der Vaart will make the team better, no question. He's a player I have rated for a long time now. The thing is people forget that Arsenal are improving too. Our young players now have experience to add to their hunger & skill and will only pull away from T*ttenham in the years to come. Cesc may well leave soon, by then we'll have Ramsey back to take on his mantle..not forgetting Wilshere, the best English talent since Gazza - remember him? Even back then T*ttenham trailed in our wake apart from the odd, once in a blue-moon occasion. Every season since I can remember T*ttenham fans have said this will be the one where they top us. As long as they remain as delusional as that without looking into the real make-up of our teams and not just big-money 'names' they will always trail. When Arsene leaves he would have left us a legacy of a youth system that will keep us going for decades. When Harry leaves T*ttenham, he will leave them in the same relative state as he did Portsmouth & Southampton. If the unthinkable happened and T*ttenham fluked a higher place than Arsenal one season...remember...form is temporary, class is permanent!

Betfair Football (September 7, 2010 8:57 AM) said:

Can't help thinking that some of you Tottenham fans are underestimating Arsenal's current standing with comments "like we are talking about strength of squads NOW and Spurs is by far the better".

The fact is that Arsenal already hold a three-point lead over Tottenham despite arguably facing a tougher start, and they have far more experience of how to handle the Premier League/Champions League juggling act.

Essex_yid (September 7, 2010 9:26 AM) said:

The fact this question is even being debated proves the gap is closing. As much as it pains me to say it Arsescum have been 'miles' ahead for the last 15 years. The days of Henry, Viera, A Cole, Pires, Overmars etc when we were fielding Simon Davies, Gary Doherty, Mauricio Taricco!

BUT we now, along with Arsenal boast a squad manned by quality international players and for the first time in many years we are able to fend off Sumemr bids for the best ones (Bale, Modric etc). Only 5 points difference last year along with decent cup runs (we should have reached that f****** final lol).

Time will tell when also competing in the Champions League but we do have good strength in depth and if City weren't on the radar i beleive 4th would def be ours again.

Peace!

wayne king (September 8, 2010 4:25 PM) said:

Spurs showed repeatedly last season that they are nor reliant on any one individual to perform well. They had several injuries to key players over the course of the season, including Lennon and Modric and still, even then, turned in some teriffic performances and managed to finish a whisker away from Arsenal. Arsenal may have been the better team for a long time now, but I'd agree that it's getting too close to call since Gallas and VDV signing. To be honest, if Arsenal are without Fabregas, I feel they are by far inferior to a full strength Spurs. However, their youth and consistently good passing football means that they are always improving. All things considered, the North London local rivalry is now onw of the most esciting in world football's local derbys. I can't wait to watch the 2 league confrontations this season.

DK (October 15, 2010 3:51 PM) said:

As an Arsenal fan, and not a dumb ass one at that. I do think Spurs have improved, they are the making of a top 4 side for sure. Redknapp has done wonders with the team, and perhaps its Redknapp we need to sort our very crappy England team out.
Being an Arsenal fan is hard, stressful and nerve wracking, and any gooner who says its not is in cuckoo land. We are riddled with injuries season after season. Full squad and we could win the league and even the CL, never have that luxury of everyone fit, no decent backup, lousy keepers. See if wenger spends in Jan, if its not too late by then!!! Why the utter hatred between fans? Yes we all want our teams to win everything, its the vile hatred that continues to breed more. Get real......its football..........not life and death.

Squig (November 27, 2010 3:02 PM) said:

I'm a Spurs fan and I don't think we are as good as Arsenal. In fact I think it's a stupid comparison that does us no favours. Why not focus on arguments that are undisputable, such as the fact that in 2 years we have turned from an embarrassing team that was going to be relegated into beating Inter Milan in the Champions League.

It's all about expectations and right now, Arsenal are expected to finish in the top 3 every season whereas Spurs are not. When those expectations are reversed then we can say we are better than Arsenal. But first we are going to have to start finisihing in the top three because talking about what you can do just doesn't wash in football.